Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015

4 Community planning

(1) Each local authority and the persons listed in schedule 1 must carry out planning for the area of the local authority for the purpose mentioned in subsection (2) (“community planning”).

(2) The purpose is improvement in the achievement of outcomes resulting from, or contributed to by, the provision of services delivered by or on behalf of the local authority or the persons listed in schedule 1.

(3) In carrying out community planning, the local authority and the persons listed in schedule 1 must—

(a) participate with each other, and

(b) participate with any community body (as mentioned in paragraph (c) of subsection (6)) in such a way as to enable that body to participate in community planning to the extent mentioned in that paragraph.

(4) Outcomes of the type mentioned in subsection (2) (“local outcomes”) must be consistent with the national outcomes determined under section 1(1) or revised under section 2(5)(c).

(5) In carrying out the functions conferred on them by this Part in relation to the area of a local authority—

(a) the local authority for the area and the persons listed in schedule 1 are collectively referred to in this Part as a “community planning partnership”, and

(b) the authority and each such person is referred to in this Part as a “community planning partner”.

(6) Each community planning partnership must—

(a) consider which community bodies are likely to be able to contribute to community planning having regard in particular to which of those bodies represent the interests of persons who experience inequalities of outcome which result from socio-economic disadvantage,

(b) make all reasonable efforts to secure the participation of those community bodies in community planning, and

(c) to the extent (if any) that those community bodies wish to participate in community planning, take such steps as are reasonable to enable the community bodies to participate in community planning to that extent.

(7) The Scottish Ministers may by regulations modify schedule 1 so as to—

(a) add a person or a description of person,

(b) remove an entry listed in it,

(c) amend an entry listed in it.

(8) Regulations under subsection (7) may provide that a person or a description of person listed in schedule 1 is to participate in community planning for a specific purpose.

(9) In this section, “community bodies”, in relation to a community planning partnership, means bodies, whether or not formally constituted, established for purposes which consist of or include that of promoting or improving the interests of any communities (however described) resident or otherwise present in the area of the local authority for which the community planning partnership is carrying out community planning.